


Somebody to Lean On

by Pi (Rhea)



Category: Wolf's Rain
Genre: Community: kink_bingo, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Watersports, ageplay sorta if you read it that way
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-31
Updated: 2012-10-31
Packaged: 2017-11-17 10:40:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/550668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rhea/pseuds/Pi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Toboe is injured, Tsume provides support.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Somebody to Lean On

Toboe spends enough time feeling like dead weight to have come to hate his scrawny, clumsy body. Even in the human form he projects, whose image he can control, can manipulate to appear intimidating, normal, he is still a mass of elbows and large, floppy feet. If he'd had a mother perhaps he'd have heard consolation about how he'd grow into it, fill out to be one of the big strong wolves like the other's in his pack. Granny just smiled at him and held his oversized paws in her own, like he was something precious, just as he was. Toboe tries to remember that feeling. What it was like to be loved just as he was and not slow everyone else down. But he can't, he can't remember beyond every time Tsume snaps at him to keep up, or Kiba turns a silent shoulder, continuing to shove forward when Toboe's paws freeze against the snow, lethargically struggling for each step.

He's been coddled, made a pet to humans, something he knows Kiba could never accept. Even Hige with his numbered collar doesn't understand Toboe's longing for a warm fireplace, a rug, and someone's feet to curl around. None of them have known humans like Toboe has. But Toboe has never known a pack, a family of wolves, like him. He had Granny, and while he isn't going to compare guilt in a pissing contest with aunts and uncles burnt a live, or mothers and children murdered by Jaguar's hunters, Toboe feels personally guilty in a way he can't explain. He killed his only family with his own jaws, and he didn't even mean to. He probably doesn't deserve a new pack, a new family. He can understand why they growl in frustration. Even Hige's eye rolls twinge that self knowledge, he's not really good enough. He doesn't even know how to be pack. But that doesn't mean he won't going to keep going. Paradise waits and there isn't really anywhere else for Toboe to be.

  
So Toboe can't help being angry about this, pissed and frustrated in a way he's not sure he's ever felt before because he's _trying_ but there isn't really anything he can do if the last deer in existence decides it's going to trample him. Toboe can't kill another creature, not again, and it's being flushed out of the forrest by the same hunters in their black military suits, hard cased like beetles swarming through the woods behind them. The poor deer probably freaked out about Toboe being in the way, trapped between humans and wolves. It's not a place Toboe likes to find himself either, really. Toboe feels as much as hears the crack as the first hove collides with his ribs. The second clocks him in the head, and then it feels like the deer may have used his poor abused side as a launching position to tear off into the forrest ahead. Toboe whimpers, tasting blood in his mouth. His legs fail to gain purchase where he scrabbles against the ground. He doesn't have time to feel more than the crashing waves of frustration and pain, both in his ribs, and at his neck where Hige is hauling him upright, before the world blackens around him.

Toboe wakes to the cold of concrete under his paws, dust and scraggly weeds tickling his nose where it rests on a dry floor. There's a wall against his back and while Toboe doesn't feel safe precisely, he can smell the scents of the others, Kiba, probably brooding, and Hige, his breath whiffling closer, somewhere nearby. Toboe cracks open one eyelid. It's dark, the half light of either twilight or early morning, Toboe's too tired to really tell. They're out of the woods clearly, though how Toboe came to be here he can't remember. The roof of the structure is partly gone, making it more of an overhang than a house. Hige's sleeping, curled a few feet away. Toboe heaves a sigh, the movement highlighting the pain in his side, and closes his eyes.

When he next opens his eyes it's to the smell of food. There hasn't been much in the last few days, so hunger has almost become a normal feeling. His stomach trying to wrap fully around his backbone in protest is still somewhat new, and Toboe can't stop the thin stream of saliva that drips from his teeth at the smell. When he opens his eyes, there is a small, bloody hunk of meat sitting on the dirty floor in front of his nose. Toboe doesn't even have to stretch to take it between his teeth and bite down. It's clearly fresh and Toboe wonders if one of the others actually caught prey. It's gone more quickly than Toboe would like, but the taste of it in his throat is enough to distract from the dully throbbing pain in his side.  
"Hey," Hige says, ploping down beside Toboe, "I see you found breakfast. Tsume's been out hunting all the time you've been asleep, it's pretty awesome." Hige pats at the bloodstains on the ground, like maybe he's looking for an extra remainder or morsel, but Toboe's only just held himself back from licking the floor clean so there isn't anything.  
"Really?" Toboe asks, "How long have I been out." It looks like it's probably almost noon. It's reasonably cool in the shade but Toboe thinks if they were still running he'd be mentally complaining about the heat of the sun baking him alive.  
"It's been a day or two. You took a really nasty bump to the head, and Kiba says you broke some ribs."   
Toboe huffs, "Feels like that at least. Thank you, for dragging me here." Toboe offers, though he imagines his smile isn't as wide as normal.  
"Ah, don't worry about it. Tsume carried you most of the way. But, I wasn't going to leave you behind. We're all in this together you know?" Hige ruffles at Toboe's hair then stands and stretches. "You just keep resting, I'm going to go find where Kiba's lurked off too." Toboe watches Hige lope off. Unlike the other two wolves, Hige has always been open and friendly. Toboe wonders if it was only because he'd stopped to help Toboe that they'd brought Toboe along. Toboe's paws twitch. He's not good at keeping still, never has been, even when it hurts to move.

Tsume comes back later, and Toboe must have drifted between, lost in thought or perhaps the dull beat of pain. They sky's warmer, with the sun sliding toward the horizon turning the shadows inky and long, the concrete a warm golden orange where it's fingers still reach. Tsume's caught a rabbit. He rips at it with his teeth, not looking at Toboe as he divides the creature into fluff and blood before placing another chunk of meet just in front of Toboe. He's almost tender with it, rather than just throwing it over, like Toboe expects. Toboe coughs.  
"Uh, thank you." He smiles, trying to catch Tsume's eye. Tsume ignores him in favor decimating his piece of rabbit. Toboe takes the silence as an indication that he should be eating and follows suit.

Kiba's not far behind Tsume. Once they've all eaten and gathered, Toboe's traveling companions sitting in various states of relaxation around their temporary home Toboe finally works up the nerve to ask.  
"So, what next? I mean, we've still got a destination to get to. When do we leave?" He tries to keep his tone light, excited to move on, even though he's not really sure he could handle the pain of walking yet. There's a tense silence, Kiba and Tsume glare at one another, but that's not really unusual.  
"Uh, well. There isn't much you can do about ribs." Hige offers with an awkward shrug, "Once you feel like you can go, I think we'll probably do it."  
"A few more days, maybe a week." Tsume growls, glaring at Toboe like Toboe might actually resist and insist they go tomorrow.  
"Oh, okay. Yeah. That sounds good!" Toboe smiles at them, thumps his tail in friendly appreciation. Hige smiles, Tsume looks like he might be inwardly rolling his eyes, Kiba just nods and stands.  
"Good." He says, final, as if something's been decided, "three days." Toboe sighs.

The thing about hurting is that Toboe doesn't want to move. It's not comfortable to stay in the same place all the time, but it hurts worse still to shift. It leaves Toboe panting and gasping for a few moments when he shifts his legs or adjusts his weight. It's certainly much better than it was, but it's really only been a day that Toboe's been alert enough to have to really deal with it and it's not fun. Hige sat with him for the morning, helping him move by offering a stable shoulder, and distracting him with a running dialogue on the clouds, or the scent on the breeze, or what food he's going to eat when they get where they're going. But eventually Hige has to go, has to run and move and can't stay still with Toboe anymore. Toboe gets it. 

Toboe doesn't expect Tsume to take Hige's place, but Tsume's ridiculously loyal like that. If Tsume carried Toboe most of the way here its because he feels the need to protect others, Toboe can appreciate that. Of course, Tsume doesn't talk all that much. He can talk, he can be quite eloquent in fact, but his default state is more watchful and contemplative than verbose. So while the company's nice, it doesn't give Toboe much to take his mind off things. Like the fact that actually he really needs to piss. Only, it hurts to stand without support and Toboe doesn't know how to ask. If it were Hige, he'd just start shifting to his feet and Hige would be there. It might be awkward, Toboe has enough insecurities about his place here already, but Hige wouldn't see it as a weakness. Hige gets it. Toboe wuffles uncomfortably, mutters under his breath.  
"What is it?" Tsume's attention is sharp. Toboe sighs.  
"I really need to pee, and um, it hurts to stand on my own." Toboe can feel the blush suffusing his cheeks, a flush of embarrassment. He's asked Tsume for help before, but the older wolf is so competent, it never really gets easier. Tsume frowns considering. "When I had to shift earlier, Hige let me lean on his shoulder, it made briefly standing much easier. If I could..." Toboe trails off, drops his eyes from Tsume's face and sighs. He could go where he's laying, but then he'd be laying in it, and Toboe really doesn't look forward to the sticky damp sensation for the rest of the night.  
"Here." Tsume grunts, voice much closer. He nudges his nose against Toboe's good side, helping slowly shift his weight. It takes a few minutes, which feel like forever.

Toboe can practically feel his ribs grinding against each other. It is not pleasant to say the least. But then he's on his feet, though they're still a little wobbly under him, leaning heavily against Tsume's powerful shoulders. It's a good thing the other wolf is built because even if he's small, Toboe isn't exactly the lightest puppy out there. They walk a few steps away from Toboe's designated lying place. And then Toboe closes his eyes, tries to ignore the fact that he's using Tsume for support and neither squatting or leg lifting are really going to happen in this situation. And it doesn't happen. Toboe wills his bladder to let go, but pain is jangling in his side, clenching his muscles tight. Probably partly is just nerves, because this is, in fact, awkward, and part of it is the pain, but Toboe wishes that for once his body could cooperate.  
"What's the matter?" Tsume asks, voice calm, even, like there's absolutely nothing unusual about it. It almost makes Toboe smile.  
"My side, I think I hurt too much, I can't-" Toboe let's out a frustrated whine, because really, his bladder feels close to bursting. Tsume makes a thoughtful no-verbal sound, a contemplative growl somewhere in his throat, then asks,  
"Can you take you're own weight for a second?" Toboe shrugs, he honestly doesn't know. He finds out in the next moment that the answer is no, no he really cannot. But just as he's falling, a startled yip flying from his mouth, Tsume's hind leg is back against his shoulder stabilizing.  
"What are you-?" Toboe starts, voice high and a little nervous before the broad swipe of Tsume's tongue cuts his words off into a garbled, reedy sound. Tsume's tongue sweeps again, lapping warm and wet against his genitalia, almost soothing and suddenly Toboe is flooded with a sense memory. There's no image because he was too young to really see at that point, but the scent was all Mom, the warm feel of her comfort against him. The same sensation to now, that urgency in his bladder that he couldn't *do* anything about, too uncoordinated, unsure. And then the feel of her tongue against him, showing him what to do, to meet her wetness with his own.

Toboe isn't sure if it's the memory, his body reacting to the ingrained response, or perhaps something in the new position eases the pain in his side but suddenly his bladder is emptying. He hears Tsume let out a surprised snort. Toboe looks back over his shoulder to see Tsume vigorously shaking his head. It makes Toboe laugh, which doesn't help much, but at least he's genuinely smiling. And he certainly feels much better. It takes a moment for the stream to die down. Toboe sighs in relief, sagging further against Tsume. He holds still, waiting for Tsume to turn around again, walk them back over to the wall. For a moment he doesn't. Then he shifts, leaning down for one brief swipe of his tongue. Toboe almost jumps at the feel of it, then the pain is back, eating up the moments till Tsume is firmly supporting his side again.

The walk back to the wall is silent but Toboe can't keep from darting looks at Tsume as they go. Tsume helps him shift back down to the ground, laying so his bad side is in the least pain. Tsume doesn't leave once Toboe's settled. Instead, he curls around Toboe's good side, breath huffing as he arranges himself. Again, that familiar feeling of contentment, family.  
"Uh..." Toboe starts, unsure what he's going to actually say. Tsume flicks an ear, glaring with one eye, at least the one Toboe can see. "You'd make a good dad someday." Toboe squeaks, because he has to think of something to say, and it is true.  
"You're too young to be on your own." Tsume growls, but it sounds more grumpy than honest. Toboe smiles,  
"Yeah, maybe, but I got you, right?" The smile morphs into a grin when Tsume's only reaction is to close is eyes and tuck his head next to Toboe's.  
"Go to sleep, we have to leave the day after tomorrow." Toboe doesn't really feel tired, he's been sleeping so much, but Tsume's a warm, large presence at his side, keeping the cold of the concrete wall at bay. Toboe lets the cadence of their breaths lull him into sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> So I got my bingo card this year, and one of the prompts on it was watersports. I knew exactly what I was going to do (actually I had the idea with posession and marking then went, no wait that's actually a watersports fic right?) because, I just finished Wolf's Rain, and really that's perfect right, because wolves mark things with urine! ....Except that's totally true but it's just *things*. As with any bingo prompt, I went and did research. 
> 
> Learning about wolf behavior was interesting, but didn't actually help me write my watersports fic because wolves, as far as I can tell from digging around, do not actually piss on one another. They mark land and trees and objects to define their territory. So yes this could still be a watersports-y fic but the actual kink would be Objectivism kink (maybe?) because for the dear wolfy brains of our characters it would actually be, "so and so sees me equivalent to a tree/fencepost". I wasn't sure I could figure that out for the characters I'm going for here (forever Tsume/Toboe because I'm a predicitable sap like that). So I continued research. I took notes. And learned something I already knew but hadn't considered, parents lick their cubs genitals to get them to urinate when they've very young. This is why you have to rub new-born, abandoned kitten butts with a damp tissue. It's both gross and adorable (in my experience of dealing with week-old kittens). So, there's potential for age-play kink, but this still isn't really helping my watersports fic (though it's closer, again Toboe's the baby here so we could accent that fact...huh). 
> 
> At the end I had this possible list:
> 
> * leaving a scent trail in case there are other wolves (why wolves urinate/mark trails). Toboe starts noticing changes in Tsume's smell (the whole bonding and pairing thing?). 
> 
> * Lone wolves don't URI, Tsume and Kiba both do, dominance thing, leadership thing, I'm not really one of you thing?? Toboe is Tsume's pack. ?
> 
> * ...fantacizing about being a tree, 
> 
> * what we've learned about cubs and age play (my daddy taking care of me la la la)
> 
> Which is how we wind up with Hurt-Comfort watersports with a side of ageplay (though Toboe is still younger than Tsume he certainly isn't a pup). 
> 
> erm, yes, my artistic process >.>


End file.
